Outsourcing finance and accounting for your business is a smart way to manage your organisation’s core functions. Without a strong hand on either, you won’t get far. It’s as simple as that. But with a firm approach, you can lay the groundwork for a strong and successful business.
Unfortunately, finance and accounting aren’t always a walk in the park. From bookkeeping and financial reporting to tax preparation and compliance, the degree of accuracy, attention to detail, and experience you need can be daunting — and that’s not to mention how time-consuming all this can be for you.
So why not outsource your finance and accounting to an outside accounting firm? Outsourcing provides several benefits, including cost savings, increased efficiency and access to specialised expertise.
Not convinced? Keep reading to find out how your business can run better with an outsourced accountant by its side.
Cost savings
One of the most significant benefits of outsourcing finance and accounting is that it can reduce costs in two main ways.
First, by hiring an accountant, rather than doing everything yourself, you get access to expertise that people spend years training to achieve. They’ve also spent years perfecting their financial services. In other words, they know what they’re doing.
As a result, the chances of human error and non-compliance penalties plummet while you get access to accurate financial information that you can use to plan for the long term. That’s not to mention the time that you save, which you can then use to focus on your bottom line.
The question, then, isn’t: ‘can you afford an accountant?’, but rather, ‘can you afford not to get an accountant?’.
Second, an outsourced accounting service tends to be far more cost-effective than hiring an in-house finance team, especially for SMEs. After all, outsourcing gives you access to skilled professionals for the amount of time you actually need them. But if your full-time finance team has a quiet week, you’ll still have to pay their salaries.
Furthermore, by outsourcing finance and accounting, you won’t need to face the indirect costs of hiring and training staff.
Specialised expertise
What’s great about getting outsourced help is the type of expertise you’ll unlock. Chances are, your accountant will have worked with many different types of businesses before, helping them build a range of skills they can lend to you to improve your firm.
Some firms specialise in supporting certain types of businesses. At Hamilton Morris Waugh, for example, we focus on engineering businesses, pharmacies and professional services. So, if you have your particular needs, you can bet there’s a firm with the accounting services you need out there.
But why is specialised expertise important? Surely you can handle your tax returns or annual accounts yourself?
While it’s incredibly important to complete your compliance work accurately and on time to avoid problems later down the line, finance and accounting go beyond compliance.
Good accounting and finance mean a tax strategy that leverages allowances and reliefs to save you money on your tax bill. It also means financial forecasting and cashflow reports; management accounts, too, which ensure you’re on track with your goals.
Need a hand with your business plan? How about an audit of your financial reporting? Or turning your business into a limited company? An outsourced accountant can help you with all this and much more.
Scalability
Outsourcing can be particularly beneficial for small businesses that need to scale up quickly because there’s no need to hire your own staff. As the business grows and its needs become more demanding, the outsourced firm can put more of its resources towards them.
If things go wrong and business droops, then the opposite is true — your outsourced accountant can take a step back to ensure you’re only paying for what you need and want.
Depending on your agreement with your accountant, things can get quite interesting. For example, many business owners elect to do their bookkeeping themselves but hand it over when things get too busy or complicated for them. You’ll love that sort of flexibility — flexibility that only outsourcing your finance and accounting can provide.
Have we convinced you about the benefits of an outsourced accounting service yet? If so, why not get in touch with us and find out about how outsourcing finance and accounting works with us?
